Teaching

By Alyssa Cowell, Catoctin School of Music Sight-reading is a fundamental tool that all musicians should take the time to develop. It involves interpreting musical notation, understanding the rhythm, tempo, and dynamics, and playing the music fluently. A student’s ability to read music quickly and accurately on the first (or maybe second) try can build confidence and musical versatility. The Benefits of Sight Reading Sight-reading equips musicians to...

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by Jamey Mann, Catoctin School of Music A debated topic amongst guitar students and teachers is the use of tablature. Modern guitar tablature (tab) is a system of lines representing strings and numbers signaling which fret to push down. This is a system in which many self-taught guitar students use to start teaching themselves basic chords and riffs. I am in the middle when it comes to...

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by Jamey Mann, Catoctin School of Music One of my favorite teaching techniques is letting my students teach me. This is valuable to the teaching process as it allows students an opportunity to verbalize what they’ve learned. It is an opportunity for teachers to gauge their student’s comprehension of topics covered during lessons. In addition, it helps with a student’s communication skills which gives them the...

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by Robert Fisher With breaks from school, some teachers may find their attendance and enrollment in lessons dip some during the inevitable summer vacation months. Rather than negatively resisting students/families summer break plans, embracing the positive aspects of these summer months and schedules can do wonders in your studio. Music teachers and students can and should take full advantage of changes in schedules to build positive...

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